Member Avatar for youwonderniknow

I'm on a laptop and for about a month now, everytime i push my L key in internet explorer it goes to full screen and back again when i push L again. However, only pushing L does it. If i hold shift and push L it does nothing. But pushing L just regurarly typing makes it switch from full screen and back.

If anybody could help me out, maybe my keyboard is bad on my laptop or something. If im in the wrong forumn area let me know, this is my first post as i just stumbled across this site...it would be greatly appreciated if anyone can just point me to the right place.

Thanks
Tony

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Brief summary and practical next steps for : when a single letter key appears to trigger a browser action the cause is usually one of three things — a hook or hotkey created by software, a browser-specific add-on or shortcut, or a failing keyboard. The fastest way to narrow it down is with short, non‑invasive tests that distinguish software from hardware.

Try these in order:

  1. Verify what the key actually sends. Open Notepad and type l. Then run the On‑Screen Keyboard (osk.exe) and press the physical L key. If OSK highlights L, the key sends the expected scan code.
  2. See whether the problem is only in Internet Explorer. Start IE without extensions (iexplore.exe -extoff) and try again. Also test in another browser (Firefox/Chrome) and in other apps. If only IE misbehaves, focus on toolbars/add‑ons.
  3. Rule out background utilities. Look in Task Manager and msconfig startup for hotkey programs (AutoHotkey, manufacturer “Hotkey” or “Launch Manager” services) and temporarily disable them.
  4. Isolate hardware quickly: attach a USB keyboard and test L. If the USB keyboard is fine and the laptop key is not, the built‑in keyboard is suspect.

If software checks fail, do a firmware/firmware‑level test: try the key in the BIOS/UEFI setup or from a bootable live USB. If the wrong action shows up at that level, it is almost certainly a hardware/driver issue. Cleaning a sticky key, reseating the keyboard ribbon (or replacing the keyboard) fixes many laptop cases — but avoid opening the machine if it is under warranty or if you are unsure; get a shop or the vendor instead.

was on the right track about isolating environment; use the steps above to get a clear pass/fail before doing a full recovery or hardware swap.

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Member Avatar for youwonderniknow

Has anyone ever known this to happen or anyone have a solution? It is extremely annoying.

Member Avatar for SnowDog

Does it do it in Safe Mode?

Does the L key have a symbol on it in BLUE? I'm just wondering if you have a Function (Fn lock) option and the L can be used with Fn to change its purpose. Just a thought, though.

Does the L key work in the BIOS? If you have the opportunity to set a password in BIOS you can test keys there.

The final test would be to do a full recovery and see if it solves the problem.

If none of that applies or works then you'd have to conclude a keyboard fault.

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